Lost Dog is a sponsored project of New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA), a U.S. tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization. When you donate through our Seed&Spark campaign, your contribution is tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law. Please note that your card will not be charged until the campaign reaches its funding goal. For contributions under $250, your Seed&Spark confirmation email and credit card or bank statement showing the charge are sufficient for tax purposes. For contributions of $250 or more, NYFA will send you a written acknowledgment letter by email after the campaign closes. Please retain it for your tax records. If your giving level includes perks, your letter will state the net deductible amount after the fair market value of those perks is applied. If you plan to give $250 or more, please make sure your Seed&Spark account is registered under your full legal name, as this is required to issue a valid acknowledgment letter.

What happens when hanging with the girls is an identity crisis? 

Elie, nascently transgender, skips out on their testosterone hormone replacement therapy (HRT) consultation to take shrooms with their roommates. When they start tripping and their besties begin to agonize about the loneliness of one of their boyfriend’s friends, and men in general, the emotionally constipated Elie goes rogue, leaving their friends behind. 

Wandering around Prospect Park, kismet slams into them in the form of their favorite trans celebrity’s lost dog. Although initially reluctant, Elie gets in touch with Noah, who asks them to come to his apartment to drop the dog off. Once there, still tripping, Elie’s bathroom snooping reveals Noah’s HRT prescription, inducing an emotional release that leads to the thievery of Noah’s meds. Leaving the apartment, Elie runs into their friends, whose worried location tracking reassures them of their support, no matter what changes they’ll go through. 

Lost Dog will be filmed in a naturalistic style with lighting and camera movement that keeps the story and its characters close and approachable. With rich colors and natural grain, we aim to capture a warm morning in typical Brooklyn environments: a cramped apartment, green Prospect Park, and brownstone-lined streets. Handheld cameras and lighting the space, rather than actors, will allow our production team to keep filming loose. Like quintessential New York television shows High Maintenance and Broad City, this short film will speed, flowing from a steady breeze to a fast rush. 

Lost Dog renders a comedic portrayal of our writer and director’s personal story as a trans person who went through steps like social transition and top surgery, long before starting HRT, despite them knowing it was what they needed to do. Transitioning can involve a lot of different steps, each with their own, often material, hurdles. This short film focuses on the challenge of a more abstract block our protagonist faces when beginning hormone replacement therapy.

With widespread attempts to vilify trans people, this film stands to provide a humanizing depiction of an imperfect person doing imperfect things, just like everyone else. That said, this short is being made with the goal of screening at LGBTQ festivals where its audience will primarily belong to those identities. It was media like I Saw the TV Glow and of course innumerous substack articles that helped finally break the block for our director, allowing them to become a happier and more present version of themself post-HRT. Lost Dog attempts to do the same for its audience. 

They say we’re going to trans your kids, and while that’s a bit reductionist, we hope this short convinces one person to give hormones a try ;) And, we thank you for any help you can provide towards this mission! 

The Cast

While the Lost Dog team is still casting Elie and their friends, the team is excited to announce the role of Noah, the trans comedian owner of the eponymous lost dog.

Nico Carney (Noah) is a Brooklyn based standup comedian, writer and actor. His standup covers his experiences as a trans man, growing up in Savannah, Georgia and whatever else he finds silly and interesting. As a standup, Nico made his late night debut in 2024 on Late Night With Seth Meyers, and was named a 2024 Comedian You Should And Will Know by Vulture. He was also named the Future Of Funny: 15 Comedians Ready To Break Out In 2025 by Deadline. Nico was selected as a JFL New Face in 2023 and was part of the inaugural Netflix “Introducing….” showcase at the 2022 Netflix Is A Joke Festival. Nico is currently touring his first standup hour which headlined at New York Comedy Festival and Netflix Is A Joke Festival in 2024. You can see Nico regularly in New York at The Comedy Cellar. ​As an actor, Nico starred as "Alex" in Writer/Director Siobhan McCarthy's feature "She's the He" which is premiering at SXSW Film Festival in March 2025. Nico co-created, writes and stars in the web series Boys Club with Conor Janda. Episodes streaming now on Youtube.

The Crew

Jordan Panzier (Writer & Director) is a writer and filmmaker. They earned a BA in Radio/Television/Film from Northwestern University in 2022. At Northwestern, they won a Media Arts Grant to make Annie’s May Caper (2023), a short film about a high school senior who attempts to unionize her class to boycott their chemistry final. They are currently based out of Brooklyn, pursuing a career in product design while writing, playing drums, and making movies in their free time. 

Katie Song (Producer) is a producer, writer, and designer based out of Brooklyn, NY. In 2025, the film she produced Flash Warning (2025) screened at six festivals across the country including the 2025 San Diego International Film Festival and the 2025 Miami International Film Festival. Katie is also a journalist and designer, having written and produced content for Variety, TV Insider, and Metacritic. When she’s not writing or producing her next project, you can find her training for the half marathon she regrets signing up for or inventing a new recipe in the comfort of her kitchen.

Morgan Sullivan (Casting Director and Creative Producer) is an actor and filmmaker who most recently starred in the feature film Something You Should Know About Me (with co-star EJ Marcus) directed by Andy Fidoten. He can be seen in multiple television projects, including Dickinson, HBO’s I Know This Much Is True (opposite Mark Ruffalo), Broad City, and Dead Ringers (opposite Rachel Weisz). As a transgender advocate, he works on projects addressing topics affecting the LGBTQI+ community and has partnered with a number of organizations to speak on the importance of trans representation in media. Morgan is the proud founder of the Trans Film Collective, a NYC-based collective focused on building community among trans filmmakers and trans film actors.

And more!

Lost Dog is currently in pre-production, our script is locked, we have gathered a core team, casting is in progress, and our Brooklyn locations are secured. 

Of the $8,500 that we are hoping to raise, a little more than half will go towards paying our cast, production, and post-production crew for their work on the short. The remaining will go towards feeding everyone during our long set days, renting insured cameras and lights, and covering film festival submission costs.  

Through our fiscal sponsorship with the New York Foundation for the Arts, every donation we receive is tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.

We will begin principal photography for Lost Dog soon, in May 2026. Then, post-production will take place over Summer 2026 so that we can kick off our festival run in Fall 2026 and have a New York screening premiere in Summer 2027. 

While our campaign goal allows us to begin production on schedule, our stretch goal of $10,000 will allow us to fully fund our post-production crew ahead of time. 

Other Ways to Help

This film isn’t possible without your help! While financial contributions are the best way to guarantee we can bring this project into fruition, you can also show your support by following us here on Seed&Spark, following our Instagram, and spreading the word to friends and family. Every share, follow, like helps us get this short made, thank you!!